Effects of the salt stress duration and intensity on developmental and physiological features of the moss Polytrichum formosum

Rajčić, Marija (author), Šircelj, Helena (author), Matić, Nikolina A. (author), Pavkov, Sara D. (author), Popanessi, Silvia (author), Sabovljević, Marko S. (author), Vujičić, Milorad (author)

The two accessions of the polytrichaceous moss species Polytrichum formosum, namely German and Serbian genotypes, were subjected to salt stress, aiming to study the species’ developmental and physiological features. Various concentrations of sodium chloride were applied to an axenic in vitro culture of the two moss genotypes, and the growth parameters as well as physiological feature changes were followed. As inferred by the morpho-developmental parameters and survival index, the Serbian genotype showed higher resistance to salt stress as compared to the German one. However, both moss genotypes survived the highest applied concentration (500 mM). As expected, short exposures to salt were rather easily overcome. No clear patterns in sugar content and changes were observed during the stress, but they are surely included in salt stress response and tolerance in P. formosum. Longer stress increased total chlorophyll content in both genotypes. In short-term applied salt stress, the Serbian genotype had a higher total chlorophyll concentration to control unstressed plants, while the German genotype decreased the total amount of chlorophyll. Similarly, carotenoids were shown to be significantly higher in the Serbian genotype, both in unstressed and treated plants, compared to the German one. The contents of tocopherols were higher in the Serbian genotype in controlled unstressed and subsequently short- and long-stressed plantlets compared to the German accession. In general, we can assume that P. formosum is unexpectedly tolerant to salt stress and that there are differences within various accessions of overall European populations, as referred by two randomly selected genotypes, which is most probably a consequence of different genetic structure.

• Language: English
• Keywords: bryophyte, NaCl, hair-cap moss, stress tolerance, resistance, biochemical characteristics, growth, genotypes
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2024
• Number of pages: 12 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 13, iss. 11, art. 1438
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-158176
• UDC: 581
• ISSN on article: 2223-7747
• DOI: 10.3390/ plants13111438
• COBISS.SI-ID: 196929539
• Publication date in RUL: 28.05.2024

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Plants
• Shortened title: Plants
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2223-7747
• COBISS.SI-ID: 523345433

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: Polytrichum formosum, mah, briofiti, genotipi, solni stres, natrijev klorid, odpornost rastlin, odpornost na stres, rast